The Apology
by katina-katchoo
Summary: AU Short chapter story. Set after Emma brings Marion back to Storybrooke. Regina is upset but one night Emma summons up the courage to visit her former friend. The rating is now M to allow for upcoming events.
1. Late Night Apology

Standing in the deep night shadows of the old tree, Emma silently watched the solitary light that illuminated the living room window of the large house on the other side of the quiet suburban street. This was the fourth, no, fifth night in a row that she had held this solitary vigil waiting and watching until, at last, the light would be extinguished for the night. Maybe tonight would be the night when Emma would finally summon enough courage to do more than lurk unseen.

It had all been going so well – an unspoken peace had been brokered between them and sometimes, when life seemed to be grinding its teeth against her soul with more ferocity than usual, Emma had always bolstered herself by allowing herself to think that they had even finally become friends. But then Emma – stupid, awkward, thick Emma – had gone and ruined everything with one simple mistake. Sure, what she had done had only been motivated by the best of intentions but she should have stopped for a moment to recall that the road to hell had always been paved with good intentions. She had always been able to screw things up on the largest of scales.

And now? Now that she had ruined everything? Now it was a constant tirade of icy attitude, malicious sneering and venomous comments being hurled in her direction whenever she made any tentative attempts to approach her former associate. Heck, even if she made the mistake of inadvertently walking on the same side of the street, the reception was frosty to say the least.

This torture had gone on for several weeks and showed no sign of abating in the near future and it was starting to rub Emma emotionally raw. If only things could be as they had been before Emma had made her mistake – if only the antagonism could be dispelled and become nothing more than a distant memory. Being pragmatic, Emma knew that it was unrealistic to want life to be exactly the same as it had been before – it was unrealistic to expect such a miracle even in a town infused with magic – but maybe, just maybe, she could do something to make things tolerable. So Emma devised a plan which would surely work.

Well, she thought, it would work if she could summon up enough courage to follow through with this plan of hers but, so far, she hadn't been able to get any further than lurking beneath this tree. And that wasn't changing things at all except for making Emma feel like she was becoming stalker-like in her behaviour which was seriously worrying.

Emma sighed quietly. It was now or never, she decided. After all, what was the worst that could happen? No, don't think about that, pretty bad things could happen if things didn't go as she had planned but that was a risk that she was going to have to take. Taking a deep breath and clutching almost frantically at her remaining shreds of courage, Emma stepped out from the comforting shadows and crossed the street.

Somehow the door before seemed imposing even though it was the same door that she had passed through so many times before. But it was now or never. Emma knocked on the wood before her with a confidence that she most certainly didn't feel. It didn't take long before she could hear the soft footfall of slippers approaching the door with a determined tread. Fighting a sudden urge to flee, Emma waited – her heart beating so hard she feared it would burst out of her chest. _Well, at least it would save Regina the trouble of having to do so_, she thought wryly.

The door swung open abruptly and bright light spilled out over Emma. Clearly not amused at being disturbed at this late hour, Regina scowled out at whoever had disturbed her evening. When she realised that the intruder was Emma, her scowl deepened even further and she started to slam the door. Expecting that this would probably be Regina's initial reaction, Emma was prepared and quickly stuck her foot in the doorway.

The door ricocheted off Emma's boot and nearly hit Regina on the rebound. Her dark eyes flaring with a dangerous light, Regina tried to slam the door again with the same lack of success. Why this apparently wasn't harming Emma's foot in any way, Regina did not know nor did she really care except, perhaps, for the sole reason that her actions weren't causing Emma any apparent discomfort. For a third time she tried to slam the door on the annoying blonde even though she knew it was a futile action. But it was the intent of her gesture that mattered.

This time as the door swung back towards Regina, Emma gave a sheepish grin and explained, "Leroy's steel-cap work boots."

Holding the door partially open Regina snarled venomously, "Well Ms Swan, you can take Leroy's boot from out of my doorway and shove it where the..."

"Regina!" Emma interrupted, "I need to talk to you."

"I don't think so, Ms Swan," Regina growled. "There is nothing that I can think of that we would need to discuss. Not now, not ever." She gasped audibly as Emma shoved the door open and pushed past her into the foyer. "I don't know what makes you have the right to just barge..."

"Look," Emma said, her voice tight with emotion, "I know that I'm the last person on Earth, or anywhere else, that you want to see but I have something I need to say to you." She clenched her fists in frustration. "Just let me say what I've come to say Regina. Then I'm outta here and you'll never see me again."

Her dark eyes still flashing dangerously, Regina said, with obvious distaste, "Very well. Say what you must Ms Swan, though I doubt that there's anything you could say that would be of the slightest interest to me. And when you've said it, get the hell out of my home." She pulled her robe more tightly over the top of her satin pyjamas and then folded her arms just as tightly over her chest. She was not amused by this intrusion and was making sure her unwelcome house guest was aware of this fact.

Shoving her still clenched fists into the pockets of her red leather jacket, the blonde stared at the floor, trying to get her thoughts into order.

"For someone who was so fired up to talk to me that she had to force her way into my house so late at night, you certainly are being reticent in your comments," Regina growled.

Emma raised her head to look Regina straight in the eyes. Taking a deep breath she said, "I came to apologise for ruining your chance for a happy ending with Robin by bringing Marion back with me."

Regina smirked. "And so you should be sorry."

Emma glanced up at the ceiling and chewed on her bottom lip for a moment. Then she looked straight at Regina again. "That's the thing – I'm not sorry." Choosing to ignore Regina's shocked reaction, she continued, "I apologise because it wasn't my intention to break the two of you up but I'm not sorry that I did. In fact, if I had the opportunity to make the choice again and I knew that I would be rescuing Marion, I'd do the exact same thing again."

"But why?" Regina frowned at her adversary. "What reason would you have to that? I thought we had become friends. Why would you want to hurt me?"

Emma sighed and removed her now unclenched hands from her pockets. "For such an intelligent woman, why are you sometimes so thick?"

This comment didn't go down well with the mayor. "I could say the same Ms Swan," she spat. "You seem to forget that I'm quite capable to turning you into a cinder if I wanted to. Annoy me any further and you may find out first-hand what I mean."

Holding up her hands in supplication, Emma said, "Okay, okay. That was something I shouldn't have said. I wasn't trying to antagonise you."

"You weren't? Now that's not like you."

A determined expression on her face, Emma deliberately stepped forward into Regina's personal space and continued to step forward until the mayor was backed up against the wall. Putting her hands up on the wall either side of Regina so that she couldn't sidle away, Emma said, "I hated it you know – watching you two together. All the hand-holding, all the giggling together at some lovers' joke, all the hugging, all the kissing, all the happiness. It just about drove me crazy."

Regina gave a regal sneer. "So all this is because you were jealous of me being with Robin? You thought that someone like you had a chance with him? Please don't make me laugh."

Straw meet camel's back. Emma thrust her face close to Regina's and growled, "No! You stupid woman, you still don't get it. I wasn't jealous of you, I was jealous of Robin. I wanted to be the one holding your hand, I wanted to be the one who made your face light up when you smiled, I wanted to..." So overwhelmed by emotion she was unable to speak coherently any more so Emma grabbed Regina's face firmly in her hands and gave her a passionate lingering kiss before letting her go.

Regina was completely stunned by this and stood as if a statue.

Emma collected herself. "So now you know. That's what I had to tell you. Goodbye Regina." She turned and walked outside, closing the door softly behind her.

Inside Regina raised trembling fingers to her still tingling lips and stared at the closed door for a long time.


	2. Realisation

**I had intended to leave ****The Apology**** as a one-shot but thanks to some encouragement from some kind reviewers, I am now extending the story.**

**I don't always get much time to write so I plan to make the chapters shortish - that way I'm more likely to be able to post new ones in a timely manner.**

**Reviews are much appreciated.**

Regina stared out of her bedroom window, down at her beloved apple tree as the first rays of morning light reached out over the hedge to caress the fruit tree's leaves. This didn't really register with Regina as her mind was overflowing with memories of the night before. The churning of the whens, whys and whos had kept her awake for much of the night and even now, after hours of tossing and turning, she was no closer to understanding her unconscious reaction to Emma's statement and especially not her physical reaction to the kiss. The kiss! Regina's lips still tingled from the memory of Emma's soft lips pressing against her own.

Leaning slightly forward, she pressed her forehead against the cool of the window glass but it did nothing to soothe the fever raging in her brain. She sighed heavily. It was all so overwhelming – a condition Regina was definitely not used to experiencing. She was the one in control, she was the one who decided what people should do and would do – she was the Queen or Mayor or whatever, damn it! Her shoulders slumped as she realised that all the power that she wielded amounted to nought when it came to this situation.

Moving away from the window, Regina sat on the edge of her bed. Closing her eyes wearily she tried to get her thoughts into some semblance of order. There was so much to try and work out and there also seemed to be something else nagging at her, some other thought that was clamouring for her attention in the back of her mind.

"Focus Regina," she instructed herself. "Start at the beginning. One step at a time."

She hadn't hated Emma when she first met her – she had hated the idea that this woman might take Henry away from her. It was a mother's instinct that had led her to doing everything that she could to prevent this from happening. But then, at the same time she hadn't been able to stop herself from admiring this feisty blonde who was so determined to do what was right and wouldn't back down from confrontation with anyone. They had occasion to cross verbal swords again and again and, while she would never admit it to anyone, she had come to look forward to those sparring sessions. And she had felt a great contentment settle on her soul when they at last forged their friendship. It had been as if it was their destiny.

And Robin? Regina frowned slightly at her mental image of the likeable vagabond. She had thought that she had loved him – that **he** had been destined to be her true love. But now, now, she wasn't certain. She had most definitely enjoyed being with him but, now that she thought about it, there had been no time when his kisses had sparked the same fire that Regina had felt surge through her body when Emma kissed her. She had never woken up the next morning with her lips still tingling with the memory of his lips upon hers.

It was true that Tinkerbell had identified Robin as being her True Love but that was long ago and in another realm. Time and circumstance changed people, sometimes dramatically, and maybe what would have been true then was now nothing but a lie. If Regina and Robin were meant to be each other's true love in this time and place, then why had he been so quick to abandon her and rush back to Marion's side?

Regina opened her eyes and stared out at the sky as the pieces started to fall into place. She had never really thought of being in love with another woman but that was only because of the manner in which she had been raised. Now that she allowed for that possibility, that freedom, she realised that her feelings of friendship towards Emma were really something deeper. She had fallen in love with the blonde as naturally as breathing – so naturally she hadn't realised what had happened – not until Emma's kiss had awoken her passions.

Regina stood and grabbed her mobile from her bedside table. She had to talk to Emma as soon as possible – to let her know that the feelings were reciprocated. Yes, yes, they had a lot to talk through as, to be honest, Regina had been quite a bitch towards Emma after Marion's return. That was when she had been blind to reality and her true emotions so she now had lots of apologising to do. Regina gave a small cheeky smile as she thought how much she would enjoy making up for her behaviour with Emma. And she was certain Emma would enjoy it too.

She hit Emma's speed dial number and waited, anxiously. She wasn't quite sure what she would say but she was certain it wouldn't matter in the end. She listened to the phone ring a number of times before it went to voicemail. Regina hung up immediately. What she had to say couldn't be left as a brief message that would be heard who knows when.

It was Saturday so Emma would be with Henry down at Granny's. If Regina had a quick shower she could be down there in about twenty minutes. After all, she did want to look her best for Emma. Throwing her phone on the bed, Regina rushed into the bathroom to get ready.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Emma and Henry were occupying one of the booths in the diner. They had been having a latish breakfast and talking about matters of no real consequence. Just stuff that resulted in lots of laughing by both parties.

When Emma's phone rang, she fished it out of her coat and the smile that had been occupying her face fled to parts unknown as she saw that the caller was Regina. Rejecting the call, she slipped the phone back into her pocket and returned her attention to her son.

"Was that Mom?" he asked.

"What?" Emma was a little flustered – she hadn't expected that Regina would try and get in touch with her.

"Mom?" Henry repeated, "You know, the one who's mayor."

"No," Emma insisted, perhaps a little too forcefully. "Why would she suddenly start ringing me?"

Henry shrugged and grinned sheepishly. "It was just how you reacted that made me think, you know..."

Emma smiled weakly. "Good detective work kid, but I'm afraid you've read the clues incorrectly." She thought quickly. "It was just about work. Something's come up so I won't be able to spend the day with you like we planned."

"Maybe tomorrow then," Henry suggested hopefully.

Emma pursed her lips thoughtfully. "Sounds like an excellent idea kiddo." She put some money on the table and got up. "Have another hot chocolate on me."

"Cool. Thanks." Henry picked up the money.

"I'll catch up with you later Henry. I'm not sure how long this will take but I'm hoping it won't be too long."

"Sure thing Mom. Bye." Henry slipped out of the booth and started towards the counter to order his chocolate.

Emma smiled fondly at his back and then quietly left the diner.


End file.
